


Flesh

by AkemiAiko



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: 15-year-Old Niall Horan, 21-Year-Old Zayn Malik, Addiction, Artist Zayn, Fixation, Innocent Niall, M/M, Overuse of pet names, Protective Zayn, Smut, Stalking, mild obsession
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-01
Updated: 2016-04-22
Packaged: 2018-05-22 06:23:56
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Underage
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,206
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6068563
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AkemiAiko/pseuds/AkemiAiko
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Zayn has a grisly obsession with skin and limbs. When he sees the young boy with the smooth skin and shaggy hair, he does everything in his power to get closer to him.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prelude

**Author's Note:**

> This is all purely fictional :)

The young boy never saw it coming. An olive-toned man armed with desire and a black bag had him bound and tied by the time he could process the fact that he was being taken. The pavement under his feet was replaced by a car floor under his body, the hard surface letting him know that this, indeed, was still reality. He tried screaming, but to no avail. The bag over his head was giving him a woozy feeling, as if he had threw back a bottle of vodka and sniffed 10 sharpie markers afterwards. The need to stay awake was slowly dwindling, and it wasn't long before the darkness finally overtook him.


	2. Hush

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zayn makes a proper introduction.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoy!

"Hush, be quiet darling. Why are there tears streaming down your face? It's quite beautiful, much too beautiful for tears," he whispered.

Zayn had an obsession with beauty, something inside of him that wanted to reach out and grab whatever he found visually appealing. He couldn't just create it anymore, it wasn't enough. You could take a photo, yes, but what happens if you lose it? You could just follow around whatever has caught your attention, but what happens if it leaves you for good? He would have none of that, it simply wouldn't do. Which is exactly why the object of his adoration was tied up to a wall in his basement.

"M'name is Zayn, I'm not gonna hurt you, would never do that. Can you tell me your name? Please? You don't have to, but I'd love to know it, seeing as we'll be here a while. So again, your name please?" The rough pads of his fingers had been stroking a rosy red cheek the entire time, hazel eyes staring into blue ones, marveling at how close they were to such a beautiful being.

The boy just didn't get it. Did his captor really just ask for his name? He thought he'd be beaten and held for a million dollar ransom, not asked to talk about himself. But Niall, being the sweet, polite boy he is, took a deep breath and began speaking anyways.

"I'm Niall," he mumbled, causing a smile of delight to stretch itself across the older man's features. Zayn couldn't recall a time he'd heard anything so wonderful, so young, so innocent. He would have given up anything to hear more of it.

"Are you hungry, Niall? I can make you something if you'd like. I could even get you something from Nando's, I know how much you like their food. I'd get you anything in the world, Ni, anything. All you have to do is tell me, love."

Now, Niall was a very social person. However, because he never received much attention, he hated being alone. With that being said, there was no way Niall would let Zayn leave him alone in this strange house, even if it was just to go out and get his favorite food.

"No, no, no, no, no!" Niall rushed out in a hurry, quick to convince Zayn that he would be content with whatever he had to offer within his home.

"No, please, it's fine! Can I just have grilled cheese? A sandwich would be great right now, you know?"

"Of course, petal. If that is what you want, then that is what you'll get."

With that, Zayn made quick work of removing Niall's restrictions, eager to detach the boy from the wall before his limbs became too sore. However, Niall was confused. If you wanted to hold someone hostage, why would you take their ropes off? Weren't you supposed to keep them as confined as possible?

"Uhm, Zayn," Niall asked the man shyly, although he didn't know why he was feeling shy since this guy actually seemed like a nice person.

"Yes, my love?"

"Why are you taking these off of me?"

"Because I meant what I said Niall. I would never hurt you, pretty things should never be hurt, they should be saved and loved and remembered. Never hurt. Okay?"

Niall couldn't believe that someone was staring at him with so much intensity. It was as if the sun found itself unworthy of shining upon Zayn's face, so it decided to become a part of it instead, making Niall's own face feel as if it would melt away and soak itself into Zayn's basement floor, never to be found again. With his brother moving out on his own and his parents divorced, he hadn't received this much attention in a long time.

Niall was usually an afterthought, that thing you remember right before bed but promise yourself you'll deal with in the morning. But he knew that even though his situation wasn't ideal, it was still better than what some kids got, so he smiled. He smiled, said thank you, and loved everyone because he truly believed that the universe wasn't entirely cruel, that if he gave good fortune and love to all then that same love and good fortune would be returned to him. Maybe this "Zayn" would bring him just that.

Niall was pulled from his thoughts when Zayn finished untying him and motioned to set him on his feet. But Niall's body refused to cooperate, and the poor boy's legs gave out from under him.

"Don't worry, I've got you petal. Just put your arms around me, we'll be fine. We always are, aren't we?" Zayn stated, looking down at the boy whom he had picked up in his arms with a smile that wasn't exactly sad, that held a sort of quiet admiration. He had been following Niall around longer than a few days, he knew how amazing he was.

"Yeah, I guess we are," he replied as he was carried up a staircase he didn't care to see. The few words that he and Zayn had exchanged made him feel more important than he had felt in months.

"Maybe, just maybe," he thought to himself, "this is the universe's way of giving back to me."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading this chapter!


	3. Chapter 3

Niall was still in Zayn's arms by the time they reached the kitchen, and saying Niall was in awe would be an understatement. He was floored, flabbergasted, astonished at how...how _different_ this house was. It was as if someone froze a scene from a beautiful nightmare and recreated it in this building.

 

Abstract portraits of ghastly, disfigured individuals and creatures adorned the bottoms of the black walls. Above them were simple drawings of shapes. Angry red triangles sat next to blue, confused circles, and squares remained neutral, shaded in with beige and gray. However, nothing compared to the ceiling, which was made up of miniscule, rainbow-colored tiles that depicted pictures of their very own too. 

 

"Z-zayn," Niall stammered. He was curious by nature, and he really wanted to know what was on those tiles that he couldn't see.

 

"Yes, my love?" Zayn responded immediately. Niall was special to him, he did not deserve to be kept waiting.

 

"Can you tell me what's on those?" he asked while pointing a small finger up towards the ceiling, which looked miles high from where they were standing. Zayn had to resist the urge to snatch the stubby finger and kiss it until it was blue. 

 

"Don't worry yourself with such things," was Zayn's response. "I'll tell you what those are about later, but right now, you need to eat, alright?" he stated as he set the boy on the counter next to the refrigerator and placed a plate of grilled cheese in his hands, a cup of apple juice at his left side. Zayn was going to make sure Niall was well-nourished. The boy's ribs and hip bones jutted out at uncomfortable looking angles, it was obvious he missed a few meals every once in a while, and nothing could make Zayn more livid than that realization alone.

 

What parent would forget to make sure their child has eaten? What parent didn't notice that their kid was beginning to look like a skeleton? Yeah, people like that didn't deserve Niall. Only he did, and he'd make sure to solidify his place in this boy's heart. 

 

"Thanks," Niall managed to say. Even in a situation like this, manners are very important. He was feeling too shy to look up from his sandwich, so when he got no response, he figured Zayn was probably making something for himself. 

 

"There's no need to say thank you Niall. I'm the one who took you, it would be wrong of me not to feed you or take care of you. "

 

Again, Niall became shy and didn't press on, and Zayn wouldn't press on either. They had alot of things to discuss in the next few days, and everything would go alot better if everyone was comfortable and relaxed. Zayn wasn't a pusher, after being pushed and forced around by people he trusted, he came to know first-hand that it wasn't a position you wanted to be in. 

 Time reveals everything, and with time, Zayn would reveal everything to Niall.

 

__

 

The day was mostly spent in silence, Niall drifting in and out of sleep, and Zayn tidying up around the place. When they did speak, it mostly consisted of Zayn reassuring Niall that it was okay to ask him for things. Niall, like some humans between the ages of 12- 18, had a rather large appetite. Zayn would never object to fixing food for the boy, he knew eating habits frequently change when you're a teenager. What he forgot was that Niall didn't have the best life at home, and that something as simple as food meant alot more than that to Niall.

 

But, through gentle coaxing, he was able to get a decent amount of food into the boy. From this point on, everything was relatively normal. It wasn't until Zayn was wiping down his countertop that realization struck him. Niall wasn't freaking out. He wasn't asking about school. He wasn't asking about why he was here. Didn't ask about his parents. At all. Not one word, not one question.

 

This made Zayn livid. How horrible must you be to someone to make them accept a complete stranger? What was his school life like? Was he bullied? Zayn hated elementary and middle school, but never missed a day of high school because he knew the end of it symbolised the beginning of his life. Why wasn't Niall itching to go like most kids his age were? Again, Zayn wasn't a pusher. However, he needed to know where Niall's head was at. Maybe he'd address this tonight.

 

_

 

"So, Niall, baths or showers?"

 

"Uhm, it doesn't matter to me. Whichever is more convenient for you, don't wanna be too much of a bother", he mumbled.

 

"Niall," Zayn began with a sigh. He'd run a bath just this time, however this conversation wasn't over. He wished that the boy would realize that everything is about him, but progress would be made eventually. 

 

"Niall, I need you to think for Niall, okay? I have an idea about what you're used to, and I have an idea about the things you've seen out there. But here, within these walls, things are, and will be, different. I don't want to make decisions for you all the time, I need you to tell me how you feel so I can give you what you need. C-"

 

"You have an idea, seriously? Do you REALLY think you have an idea about what my life is like?! My parents don't care about me. You understand that?! THEY DON'T CARE. After they divorced, Mom made her new family and Dad made his! It doesn't matter if I'm uncomfortable or not, because this is their time to get things right and I better not ruin it! I don't get new clothes and I sleep on the floor because I'm not a 'full-time' member of the household and some things are only done for people in the 'immediate family unit'! Who tells their kids they love their siblings more than them?! Who Zayn?!" Niall screamed, chest heaving and water splashing everywhere. 

 

"Shh, you're having a panic attack my love. Let's go to bed now, yeah? We'll try a bath tomorrow, alright?" Zayn was very familiar with panic attacks, the last place Niall needed to be was a closed-in area like a bathtub.

 

So Zayn picked him up, carried him to his room, and curled up around him on the bed. Eventually, the blond feel asleep, and Zayn let his thoughts race. People ruin things alot. Sometimes they ruin plans, sometimes they ruin their own lives, and sometimes they ruin other people's. Maybe that's why Zayn does what he does to bad people. Those who seek to destroy shouldn't benefit from actions done by the good, right? In Zayn's mind, it is right.

 

But Niall is going to change him. Make him see the world differently, give him a reason to make changes. As the older man stared out the window across the room, he finally stopped himself. He knew this type of thinking could keep one up all night, and it wouldn't get him anywhere at all. He'll think some other time, because right now, he was drifting into the best slumber of his life.

 

 

 


End file.
